Manhattan Exchange — Restaurant in City of Schenectady

As a self-proclaimed food connoisseur, I have been traveling the USA looking for a restaurant that can meet my incredibly high and some would consider unrealistic expectations. While traveling upstate NY and constantly being disappointed, I came across the oasis known as "The" Manhattan Exchange, in what I assume to be the historic city of Schenectady, NY. After promptly being seated, it felt as though my family and I were the only customers there, even though they were plenty busy. The wait staff was attentive and quick to make it feel like we were regulars. Wanting to make sure this was not an act, I placed a challenging order to see if they were the real deal. "Beer and a burger" I said, maybe a little to confidently. The waitress did not skip a beat with my unusual order and as if to one up me asked, "Would like some water as well." "Touche" I said with a grin, eagerly planning my next move. After enjoying the locally made brew, which can only be described as nectar of the gods, my burger promptly arrived. I decided it was time to put this establishment through a real test. "May I please have some ketchup and BBQ sauce on the side." My mouth turned to a smirk, knowing there was no way my request would be met. "Sure, no problem." I heard, my smirk changing to a look of disbelief. After savoring every bit of that burger, which I can only assume was made by Gordon Ramsay's son, Gordon Ramsay Jr, himself. I decided to end my tireless quest for food perfection, as it is now my belief that nothing can match the quality and excellence of "The"...

I would like to start off by saying, the upgrade looks great and creates a very pleasant atmosphere. Ive been coming frequently since opening. I also love the “new” menu... I’m very disappointed with my visit today though. I brought a friend who’s from out of town, we were on a limited lunch break so my friend called our order in before we got there. My friend ordered garlic parm wings and she ordered me the lobster avocado.... well when my friend called in she asked for lobster avocado roll.... my friend was not asked for any clarification just if she wanted it hot or cold, I responded and told her I’ve never had it hot before so I will still to the cold. Anyhow, I got a cold lobster roll on bread... no avocado... when I questioned the waitress if I could at least have some avocado, she said it would be extra and that my friend ordered it wrong that’s why I got what I got... I understand that to an extent... however if you don’t make “lobster avocado rolls” wouldn’t you have asked for clarification whether you wanted the lobster avocado or the lobster salad roll... the lobster is always good, I however would not pay the price that I did to eat what little bit I had... the waitress knew I was not happy and offered no help to possibly correct the “misunderstanding” all the way around... I ate the lobster salad and left the bread intact on my plate and left pretty annoyed... we weren’t even asked at any point how...

Had a reservation for 630 on 10/30/24. There was no hostess to be found anywhere. Went to bar to wait for hostess to appear. Waited almost 20 minutes for the extremely slow bartender to pour 2 beers and make espresso martini. 2nd martini ordered was waayy to strong. Asked for creamer or milk to cut it, but they DIDNT HAVE any of either. Asked if she could make another not so strong and eas told NO! Finally asked someone about our table so we sat. Christina was our server and was less than friendly and avoided us at all cost. Then there was the wait..waiting for server to take drink order..we only needed water. Waited longer (at least 10 minutes) for her to take order only to find out there was a very long wait for food. Drinks ran dry..no server. Went to bar...wouldn't give us drinks cuz we had a table. Thank God other server was pleasant and ordered for us. People around us being served both food and beverage and we sit. Thank God the kitchen made some good food. This was supposed to be my birthday dinner and I could not have been more disappointed. When I asked for manager...she said THERE WAS NONE!!!! 2 servers and a bartender to run a restaurant. So no accountability for the terrible service and way too long wait. I wrote "awful service" on the cc receipt but probably got scratched out. Too bad it was such a...